The present invention relates to a greeting card system including a pewter, brass, sterling silver or gold charm/ornament for the use of attaching to a secondary jewelry component. The ornament is designed to be advantageously suspended on a piece of jewelry or personal accessory for use of fashionable decoration for people and pets. The combination greeting card, charm/ornament and jewelry accessory functions as a system for giving and receiving a memento or other physical object in order to convey and especially preserve a memory.
There are a variety of designs for greeting cards on today""s market. In addition to having the greeting card convey an appropriate greeting, today""s cards attempt to capture attention by means of their particular design or other entertaining quality. One of the more increasingly common uses of a greeting card is in conjunction with the transmittal of a package, gift, or similar item. Combining a greeting card and a commemorative gift provides for an enhanced commercial product in that a consumer wishing to purchase a gift may also provide a greeting card simultaneously. Likewise, a purchaser intending to send a greeting card may also provide a small collectible or gift. Hence, the combined greeting card and gift, or xe2x80x9cgreeting gift,xe2x80x9d is an ideal product for satisfying two purposes.
Various greeting gifts have been suggested for transmitting a gift and conveying a greeting. Suggestions have been made for attracting attention or providing a package and message that appeal to purchasers and their intended gift recipients.
Prior patents disclosing greeting cards which include ornaments include: U.S. Pat. No. 2,616,199 issued to Seymour Robins on Nov. 4, 1952; U.S. Pat. No. 3,411,228 issued to John W. Lacey on Nov. 19, 1968; U.S. Pat. No. 4,055,690 issued to Michael P. Patterson on Oct. 25, 1977; U.S. Pat. No. 5,670,219 issued to Hong C. Na on Sep. 23, 1997; and U.S. Pat. No. 4,084,015, issued to Michael P. Patterson on Apr. 11, 1978.
The present invention provides a greeting card including an ornament/charm packaged with a ring as a bridging mechanism, and a jewelry fashion accessory; either packaged together or purchased separately as part of a merchandising system. This novel card system allows the sender to provide a convenient ornamental object for the recipient to display on a fashion accessory, thus providing for the long term remembrance of the sender, and also to stimulate sales of greeting cards so that ornaments/charms can be collected to adhere to the fashion accessory received with the first card. The card provides all the functions of a conventional greeting card, such as delivering an appropriate message from the sender to the recipient. Such greeting categories include: Birthday, Get Well, Good Bye, Congratulations, Retirement, Friendship, Holiday Greetings, Good Luck, and various other special occasions. However upon receipt of the card, the ornament/charm, which reflects the message of the card, may be fashionably displayed, and the card therefore provides an impression which endures much longer than if the card were simply stored away.
Accordingly, in this invention, we have a greeting card system, which has a message that relates to what a consumer is trying to convey by sending the card-acknowledging a date, memorializing an event or communicating a message. The card conveys a message about something specific or a specific event/occasion.
Also, in the inventive system, an ornament such as a charm is attached to the greeting card. The charm is related to the card""s message in a creative way. (Example: Christmas card with a candy cane charm states xe2x80x9chappy holidaysxe2x80x9d, a Get Well card with a can of chicken soup charm states xe2x80x9cfeel betterxe2x80x9d, a Wedding card with a wedding cake charm states xe2x80x9cwishing you a lifetime of lovexe2x80x9d, etc.)
The card functions as a delivery mechanism and thus the primary goal of the inventive system is to deliver to the card recipient a memento (reminder, memorialization, keepsake related to the card""s messagexe2x80x94the charm), which will, by the nature of it""s use (displayed on an accessory), keep alive the sentiment or message of the card, provide a reminder of the event for which the card was sent, significantly outlast a paper greeting card, and creatively reflects the unique/special/memorable experience of the occasion for which the card was sent, or the person from which the card was received.
Accordingly, one goal of the inventive system is to deliver to the recipient of a greeting card a memento that is related to the message thereon and which will stay with and around the receiving person long beyond the card by which it was delivered.
Another goal is to create a card that presents, and has affixed to it, an ornament such as a charm that represents the sentiment or communication of the card. The charm allows the sentiment to stay in existence far after the occasion for which the card has been sent has passed. The communication, because of the charm, survives the typical viewing life of a card. The viewing life or period of time that one keeps the card in view is minimal. An individual throws a card away, files them, puts them in shoe boxes, etc. The person who has sent the card has sent a short lived communication that can become forgotten once the card is put away or thrown away.
Thus, by attaching the charm or other ornamentation to the card (the charm has a direct correlation to the message conveyed on the card), a personal memento or commemoration is provided to the recipient to remind them of the occasion for which the card was sent, and creates a memory of the senderxe2x80x94thus, the message of the card stays with the recipient forever. Additionally, since the charm can be attached to an accessory, it is worn by the recipient as jewelry or can adorn everything from a pin to a key chain, and thus it becomes a conversation piece or visual focal point to others.
Still another goal of this invention is an attachable/bridge mechanism. In every packaged card of the inventive system, there is provided literature on the bridge ring for the charmxe2x80x94stating the charm""s purpose. The literature facilitates the message from the greeting card manufacturer, and further makes it clear that the charm is meant to be removed from the card, and attached to accessory item. Thus, the bridge ring is effectively a bridge mechanism, providing the recipient a vehicle on which to display the charm. Every card is packaged with a bridge ring, which makes it clear to the recipient that the charm is to be used in a separate capacity besides just adorning the card. It makes it clear to the consumer that the charm is to be detached from the card and attached to an accessory via a ring as a bridging mechanism, or can be used by itself on the recipients personal item to either observe or memorialize the occasion for which the card is sent.
A further goal of this invention is providing a storage/display mechanism for the ornament. The storage/display mechanism comprises an xe2x80x9caccessory itemxe2x80x9dxe2x80x94such as a key chain, necklace, bracelet or other jewelry itemxe2x80x94which will allow the recipient to store/display their charm on a functional personal article and allow it to become a lasting reminder for the message that the card acknowledged. The storage/display mechanism creates in the consumer a need or demand for xe2x80x9cmorexe2x80x9d charms.
Yet another goal of this invention is to create a system for delivering ornaments such as charms. Through this invention, the greeting card manufacturer has a system for attaching a charm to a card, which now has direct correlation to the a message conveyed. The charm presents a personal memento to the recipient to remind them of the occasion for which the card was sent, and creates a memory of the senderxe2x80x94a detachable, physical manifestation of the meaning of the card. Therefore, the message of the card stays with the recipient forever through the inventive system of card+charm+charm ring+accessory, and further stimulates a future desire to receive, display, and accessorize with or collect charms.
Still other objects and advantages of the invention will become obvious in view of the following detailed disclosure.